Saturday, July 14, 2012

Brothers

Here's a rare shot of the massive divide between Hanoi's urban development, and the vast majority of the country which has been untouched by the supposed 'economic miracle' of the recent years.

These boys are brothers.

One lives with Blue Dragon in Hanoi; he spent some years surviving on the streets but now resides in our Shelter. He goes to school, loves playing on the internet, and is in every way a 'typical' modern kid.

His brother has never been to school, has never left the immediate district where he lives, and has never seen a computer. Sadly, for the province in which he lives, this too is typical.

6 comments:

It's certainly unusual in our world, and I think it does bring certain dangers and vulnerabilities. Most of the young people we work with who are trafficked are kids who have never left their village, and so are easily tricked into thinking that 'the grass is much greener over there...'

In this boy's situation, never venturing away from his district is symptomatic of his lack of opportunities. He works for a family all day and most nights, too. I suspect he'd love to have the same opportunities that we enjoy.

But even with all that, there's something to be said for the romantic notion of living one's life very quietly, away from the crazy world...

Yes, that's right Michael; but the 'unsmiling brother' is actually just as happy! Traditionally, most Vietnamese people in country areas do not smile for photos, and I believe the same is true in some other Asian nations...